Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a drive apparatus and a belt unit for an image forming apparatus.
Description of the Related Art
In an image forming apparatus, such as a printer, a known mechanism for driving rollers, and so on, to rotate is a mechanism in which a pin (axle member) is attached to one of a driven-side shaft (rotary axle) and a drive-side shaft, while the other shaft without the pin engaging with the pin, and rotary drive power is transmitted via the pin. Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-228824 discloses a drive power transmission mechanism provided with a pin fall preventing member, wherein sliding movement of the fall preventing member and the pin during rotation of the shaft is suppressed by a configuration using two pins.
In the configuration disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-228824, the shaft which engages with the pin is configured so as to engage directly with the pin and the other shaft, and it is difficult to adjust the alignment of the central axes of rotation between the two shafts. Furthermore, the fall preventing member only has a function of restricting the movement of the pin for transmitting drive power and preventing falling of the pin from the axle, and does not have a function for drive transmission. Therefore, if the central axes of rotation of the two shafts are not substantially aligned, then there is a problem in that accurate drive transmission is difficult to achieve.